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Wild Card Weekend has been full of excitement thus far, and the next round of the playoffs is nearly set. One matchup that is already set and has gathered plenty of attention for the Divisional Round is between the Baltimore Ravens and Buffalo Bills. These were two of the best teams in the regular season, with each team featuring an MVP candidate at quarterback.
This might be the best game of the Divisional Round, so let’s quickly look back at how each team fared in the Wild Card Round before jumping into this upcoming matchup.
The Ravens matched up against a familiar face in the Wild Card Round. Baltimore had already faced the Steelers twice in the regular season and split the series 1-1, but it was clear that the Ravens had much more momentum entering the playoffs. Lamar Jackson and the Ravens had won their last four games of the regular season, which included a 34-17 win over the Steelers. It was a similar domination this past weekend.
Baltimore jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first half, and it was obvious that the Steelers couldn’t stop the run. Derrick Henry finished with 186 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns on 26 carries, while Jackson added 81 rushing yards on 15 rush attempts. Jackson didn’t need to do much through the air since they dominated the ground game, but he still threw for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns.
The Steelers made the game look closer than it felt, thanks to a George Pickens touchdown late in the third quarter. Russell Wilson found Pickens and Van Jefferson for touchdowns and completed 20 of his 29 passes for 270 yards. That’s a solid stat line for Wilson, so where did the Steelers go wrong? Simply put, Pittsburgh couldn’t run the ball at all. Najee Harris totaled 17 rushing yards on 6 attempts as the Steelers finished the game with only 29 rushing yards. It was pure domination for the Ravens defensive line, which became the difference in the game.
Bo Nix and the Broncos were in for a tough day. They not only had to beat MVP candidate Josh Allen and the Bills, but they also had to do it in Buffalo. The Bills were a perfect 8-0 at home in the regular season and improved that number to 9-0 as they won 31-7 over the Broncos. Nix did his best to keep the Broncos competitive, which included a 43-yard touchdown pass to take a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, but that was all the scoring Denver did.
Allen led the Bills to 31 unanswered points en route to another big win at home. He finished 20 for 26 with 272 passing yards and 2 touchdowns against one of the best defenses in the league. James Cook ran for 120 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries. Buffalo dominated the Denver defense in every aspect, and it wasn’t long before the Bills pulled away.
The biggest concern for the Bills in recent weeks had been their secondary. Buffalo took that personally because they held Nix to just 13 completions for 144 yards. If the Bills offense continues to score upwards of 30 points per game and the defense performs the way it did on Sunday, it’s going to be extremely hard to beat Buffalo – especially in Buffalo.
Two of the most efficient and dangerous offenses will take the field on Sunday night in Buffalo. Each offense is led by a superstar quarterback who had an incredible regular season, is extremely accurate, and isn’t afraid to take off and use their legs when needed. For Josh Allen, he likely won’t be using his legs as much as usual this weekend.
The Baltimore defense has held opponents to 29, 56 and 58 total rushing yards in their last three games. Instead, look for Allen to stay in the pocket and utilize his strong arm. The weakness of this Baltimore team is the secondary, and Allen has thrown for 2 or more touchdowns in 7 of Buffalo’s 9 home games.
Keith is a sports writer who has evolved into a sports betting personality across social media in the past several years. He specializes in MLB but also writes about the NFL and NBA.